THE FOOD Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has called on retailers to source chicken from producers that use leak-proof packaging.
The call came after a European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) study found the majority of chicken carcasses in Irish plants are contaminated with campylobacter, a bacteria that causes food poisoning.
The FSAI said a study it carried out has also found the organism on the outside of more than 13 per cent of chicken packets and on almost 11 per cent of display cabinets. It examined 785 packaging surfaces and the same number of display cabinets and found cross-contamination can occur from a whole chicken if the packaging allows the meat juices to leak out.
This in turn can cross-contaminate other food products and is especially serious if it leaks on to food that will not be cooked prior to consumption, the authority said yesterday.
Campylobacter infections can cause acute gastroenteritis with diarrhoea and/or vomiting. They can be severe and life threatening in vulnerable people, the authority said, but the bacteria is destroyed by thorough cooking.
FSAI chief executive Prof Alan Reilly said leak-proof packaging can provide a significant barrier to the spread of campylobacter.
“We have asked retailers to source chicken products from producers using leak-proof packaging solutions,” he said.
